Not Living In The Shadows Anymore

Everyone has probably heard about the tragic accident in Florida on a smoke filled highway that has resulted in the deaths of 10 people so far. What you may not know is that 5 of the dead were all from one family in Georgia. What will follow is not an attempt to take away from horrendous nature of what occurred but rather an attempt to once again point out the hypocrisy in our immigration enforcement policies and practices.

You see that family was here illegally. They didn’t just show up yesterday or last week either. They had been living in this country for 12 years. The father was not exactly in the shadows either. He started a church which caters to the Hispanic community. His kids all attended school. Somewhere down the line while operating his tax exempt church, which I don’t if he applied for that status or not, he acquired a couple of vans, drivers licenses, tags and made quite a nice life for himself and his family here. In other words he was living the American dream without the burden of having to be an American.

He and the other survivors, along with other members of their church in Marietta, Church of the Restoration at U.S. 41 and S. Marietta Parkway, where Jose Carmo was one of the founding pastors, are all still in shock at the deaths — in the other church van — of Carmo, his wife, Adriana, their 17 year old daughter, Leticia, his brother Edsom and the brother’s girlfriend, Rose DaSilva.

The 15-year-old daughter, Lidiane, who survived and is still in a Gainesville, Fla. hospital, was told Tuesday that her immediate family is gone.

The family moved to the U.S. from Brazil 12 years ago.

They were undocumented.

This week in Georgia our legislature has taken up the issue of shoring up funds for the state run, lottery financed scholarship program called the HOPE scholarship and along with it the topic of tuition rate for illegal aliens came up. You see they, the institutions of higher learning that is and the illegal immigrant supporters, are trying to change the very terms of the argument. It is no longer a matter of acknowledging the presence of illegals, it is now all about setting the terms in which this population will be treated, almost reminiscent of the old ‘separate but equal’ arguments that stoked the Civil Rights arguments of the 60’s.

My counter charge in both of these cases is that if immigration agencies were doing their job properly they wouldn’t be in this country long enough to have developed roots or become ingrained into their communities. Arguing that a person had received a K thru 12 education in this country while being here illegally is used as an argument to allow them attend college would be rendered moot, since they should have received a K thru 1 education at best before being deported.

You see the illegal aliens and their advocates now count on the complacency of the average citizen to tolerate them and the hugely ineffective programs set up to address the problem. Those that do speak up are quickly smeared with personal epithets and character assaults to shut them up.

The fact that the family was here illegally does not change the horrific facts of what has now occurred, but they should have never been there in that place and time to start with with our immigration laws were enforced and don’t think starting a church and being a very public figure in the community is exactly living in the shadows. Additionally medical aid for the sole surviving member of this family as well putting together other details of what occurred has been hampered by the inability of those connected to speak English.

8 Responses to “Not Living In The Shadows Anymore”

Lidiane would not be deported because of a federal law granting special status to juveniles. Lidiane can become a ward of the state and be issued a green card, allowing her to stay. Which I will totally support, she was a baby when she came to this country and no child should go through what she is going through and will go through emotionally and physically. The trauma she experienced cannot not be describe.
verify this with any Immigration lawyer in GA.
I agree, the US should take better actions to secure the borders and have a better immigration policy/policies in placed. I would not expect the Government to deport a minor.
this is a country of immigrants whether you like it or not.
a true international nation which is changing to a multicutural one.

This is a country of laws, and you obviously do not like it.
This is not a nation of strawmen, and this obviously bothers you.

All four of my grandparents emigrated to this country. All four of them did it legally.
P.S. There’s a path to becoming a teacher, and there’s a shortage of teachers teaching specialty subjects that I can teach right now. But I can make up a sob story showing how I am special and I don’t need to wait in line. You’ll help me get into a school and just start teaching children without a background check or T.B. test, because we’re a nation of teachers. Right? And when the apologists use the weasel term “undocumented”, that’s what they’re avoiding. We have no freaking clue if we’ve got a violent criminal or Typhoid Mary. If I agree to be a good little NEA thug, will that help?

Blue Hen: This is a country of laws, and you obviously do not like it.
This is not a nation of strawmen, and this obviously bothers you.

As stated above… I do believe in laws – I pointed out initially that Lidiane can stay in thix contry, there are legal means to have that accomplised as explained above, should you have a doubt contact an immigration lawyer.

I do also think that we should be more humane in certain circunstances especially on a 15yr old who lost her family.

Do you know what happens to children when their parent are deported??? this is not covered on the news… in some instances they are giving up for adoption without parents’ consent – while the actual parents are overseas…. in most cases unable to communicate well in english and without money to hire a lawyer to get their kids back…

Immigration is a very complex issue, but certain cases should be reviewed more carefully than others.

Do you know what happens to children when their parent are deported???

Do you know what happens to children when their parent is (deported, arrested for being an axe murderer, moves a ton of coke, builds pipe bombs for fun and profit, does something tragically stupid and the IRS/FBI/SEC/(insert LEC of choice here) gets wind of it? Pretty much the same damn thing, or some other ugly variation. They get screwed over as a direct and indirect result of the crimes committed by their parents. As extended families get smaller, we can expect it to happen a lot more. And the poster didn’t even advocate shipping her anywhere, so where in Hell is this coming from? he was pointing out the FACTS that her Dad was a proud law breaker and wasn’t lurking under a porch somewhere. AND our media is adhering to a style guide which is really the Dem party platform.

Last time you ended with an ugly, stupid swipe about “immigration’, deliberately leaving off the distinction ‘illegal’, and deliberately implying that the post was against all immigration (nice ploy. Pathetic, overdone and dishonest. But nice). This time the gag line is, “complexity, and reviewing carefully”.

As for the line of horsecrap about multicultural, NY had dozens more foreign language publications than it does now. And the majority if imigrants did it legally. And if you think your line of multiculturalism will fly in Mexico, Brazil or in the Arab world, or even in parts of the EU, you’re barking mad.

“””” The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said Wednesday that an illegal immigrant who was injured and lost most of her family in Sunday’s multivehicle wreck in Florida will not face deportation.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Miss Lidiane Carmo as she deals with the tragic loss of her family,” ICE spokeswoman Barbara Gonzalez said. “Reports of her facing deportation are completely false.”

“ICE’s stated priorities include convicted criminals, immigration fugitives, repeat immigration law violators and recent border crossers,” Gonzalez said in a written statement.””””